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New findings on ocean warming: 5 questions answered
New findings on ocean warming: 5 questions answered The ocean absorbs about 90 percent of the excess heat produced as climate change warms the earth. Editor’s note: A new study by scientists in the United States, China, France and Germany estimates that the world’s oceans have absorbed much more excess heat from human-induced climate change than […]
How the media encourages – and sustains – political warfare
How the media encourages – and sustains – political warfare Since his inauguration, President Donald Trump has been waging war against the American press by dismissing unfavorable reports as “fake news” and calling the media “the enemy of the American people.” As a countermeasure, The Washington Post has publicly fact-checked every claim that Trump has labeled […]
7.5 billion and counting: How many humans can the Earth support?
7.5 billion and counting: How many humans can the Earth support? Humans are the most populous large mammal on Earth today, and probably in all of geological history. This World Population Day, humans number in the vicinity of 7.5 to 7.6 billion individuals. Can the Earth support this many people indefinitely? What will happen if we […]
‘Enlightenment Now’ rationalizes the violence of empire
‘Enlightenment Now’ rationalizes the violence of empire Through an impressive array of data and visual metrics, Steven Pinker’s most recent book, Enlightenment Now, presents a fiercely optimistic portrait of the achievements of the human race. Pinker uses stats and charts to show how, as one reviewer put it: “Wars are fewer and less severe, homicides are […]
We know how food production needs to change if crisis is to be avoided – so why isn’t this happening?
We know how food production needs to change if crisis is to be avoided – so why isn’t this happening? As the world races toward a projected 9 billion inhabitants, the failings of dominant food systems are impossible to deny. Current food production methods are severely polluting. They are the cause of malnutrition. They are also […]
Facebook is killing democracy with its personality profiling data
Facebook is killing democracy with its personality profiling data What state should you move to based on your personality? What character on “Downton Abbey” would you be? What breed of dog is best for you? Some enormous percentage of Facebook’s 2.13 billion users must have seen Facebook friends sharing results of various online quizzes. They are […]
Hope from chaos: could political upheaval lead to a new green epoch?
Hope from chaos: could political upheaval lead to a new green epoch? The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (the IPCC) published its first major report28 years ago. This watershed document described the ominous implications of escalating emissions and the scale of the challenge in reversing this seemingly inexorable trend. Today, despite four further IPCC reports, 23 […]
Is it possible for everyone to live a good life within our planet’s limits?
Is it possible for everyone to live a good life within our planet’s limits? Imagine a country that met the basic needs of its citizens – one where everyone could expect to live a long, healthy, happy and prosperous life. Now imagine that same country was able to do this while using natural resources at a […]
Macron’s pledge to wipe out coal is just as meaningless as Trump’s plan to revive it
Macron’s pledge to wipe out coal is just as meaningless as Trump’s plan to revive it In a speech at the 2018 World Economic Forum held in Davos, Switzerland, French President Emmanuel Macron said he wanted to “make France a model in the fight against climate change” and promised to shut all coal-fired power plants by […]
Limits to growth: policies to steer the economy away from disaster
Limits to growth: policies to steer the economy away from disaster The earth is a finite place. If the rich nations in the world keep growing their economies by 2% each year and by 2050 the poorest nations catch up, the global economy of more than 9 billion people will be around 15 times larger than it is […]
Meltdown Earth: the shocking reality of climate change kicks in – but who is listening?
Meltdown Earth: the shocking reality of climate change kicks in – but who is listening? Parts of the Arctic were 16℃ warmer than normal in February. Bernhard Staehli / shutterstock And another one bites the dust. The year 2014 was the warmest everrecorded by humans. Then 2015 was warmer still. January 2016 broke the record for the largest monthly temperature anomaly. […]
Eyes down: how setting our sights on soil could help save the climate
Eyes down: how setting our sights on soil could help save the climate The world’s soils store four times more carbon than its plants. The world’s soils could be a key ally in the fight to limit global warming to 2℃, thanks to their ability to store carbon and keep greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere. […]
To feed growing cities we need to stop urban sprawl eating up our food supply
To feed growing cities we need to stop urban sprawl eating up our food supply New season asparagus from farmland on Melbourne’s city fringe. Matthew Carey If you’ve eaten any of the new season’s asparagus recently, it probably came from Koo Wee Rup, a small town 60 kilometres to the south east of Melbourne. Koo Wee Rup […]
The race to fish: how fishing subsidies are emptying our oceans
The race to fish: how fishing subsidies are emptying our oceans Fish numbers are rapidly dwindling globally, and fishery subsidies are one of the key drivers behind this decline. In 2009, these subsidies totalled about US$35 billion, creating incentives for fishers around the world to increase their catch. But this short-term “race to fish” is jeopardising the […]
Bee battles: why our native pollinators are losing the war
As global commerce grows, the movement of goods is occurring at ever-faster rates. And with increased global trade comes the spread of non-native species. This includes invasive insects that are making life difficult for domestic bees. Non-native species get introduced both intentionally and accidentally. However they migrate, though, their spread can lead to devastating results. […]
